Tag Archives: high school athletics

The Ridley First Boys’ basketball season came to a close after a successful first season in the Ontario Scholastic Basketball Association (OSBA), the premier league for prep and sport school basketball in the province. With one of the youngest teams in the league Ridley will continue to develop and train in preparation for next season.

“I’m really proud of our guys,” – Tarry Upshaw, Head Coach of First Boys’ Basketball Team

On April 6th, Ridley lost their OSBA quarter-final game 96-71 against defending champions the Athlete Institute; putting an end to their successful season. Aleksandar Simeunovic ’17, led the team with 31 points in a close fought game—Ridley was within five points of the Institute with six minutes left in the game.

The stacked Athlete Institute’s roster featured seven players already committed to NCAA schools. Ridley was the second youngest team in the league and will have most of its players back for next season.

That youth hasn’t gone unnoticed, as scouts from across North America have come to campus to check out the talented roster. According to Mr. Upshaw, 21 NCAA Division 1 scouts have visited Ridley, schools such as UConn, Vanderbilt, Oregon, and Columbia; while 16 scouts from the CIS have been to the campus.

“We’ve built something special in a short period of time. It’s exciting and it’s only going to get better.” – Tarry Upshaw, Head Coach of First Boys’ Basketball Team

The OSBA, consists of the best prep and sport school basketball programmes in the province, with many of its student athletes going on to play in the NCAA and CIS. Ridley finished sixth overall, in a promising first season in the league.

Ridley’s basketball team previously competed in CISAA and OFSAA, where they won back-to-back championships in both leagues in 2014 and 2015. As the first team to hold both titles simultaneously, it was decided to take the next step for the programmes’ development by joining the OSBA.

Preparation for this level of competition includes daily court sessions, strength training, and active recovery. Training and competition are supported by an experienced coaching staff, Ridley’s athletic therapy and school medical team, a strength and conditioning coach, and other professional instructors.

Ridley qualified for the playoffs by defeating King’s Christian Collegiate in a play-in game 86-66, held in the Griffith Gym. “We’ve been overwhelmed by the support of students and faculty,” says Upshaw. Other coaching staff for the team include Michael Bett, Brad Taylor, and Paul De Vellis.

With the season coming to end players will enjoy a short break, before beginning off-season practice and development “We don’t stop,” says Mr. Upshaw. “The sky’s the limit for our team.”

Despite the end of their OSBA season, exciting news has still been circulating for the Tigers, as fellow player, Jaden Bediako ‘18, was chosen to play in the BioSteel All-Canadian All-Star Basketball Game. This marks an impressive accomplishment for both Jaden and Ridley’s basketball programme.

We look forward to seeing our Ridley Tigers back in action in the next school year.

On March 5th, Reece Wilson-Poyton ’18 captured the Canadian National Indoor Archery Championships in the Cadet Recurve category, which requires archers to hit a small target from 18m away. This victory caps a remarkable run for the Ridley student, who took up competitive archery in 2015.

His goal is to make the 2020 and 2024 Summer Olympics teams, and plans on beginning his training for shooting Olympic outdoor distances (70m) next year.

He was inspired to take up this less-common sport after attending the archery contests during the 2015 Pan-Am Games held in Toronto. “I love the sport so much because I am constantly improving, learning, and changing,” says Reece, who is now giving back to the archery community by becoming a Level 1 instructor for beginners at the Brockley Archery Club in Hamilton.

Athletics is an integral part of the Ridley College experience, all students participate in some form of physical activity every day. Ridley participates in the Sport for Life Society’s Long Term Athlete Development Model (LTAD). Which exposes students to a variety of sports as a foundation for engaging in sport for life. It provides a path to better sport, greater health, and higher achievement based on the latest sport science and best practices in coaching and training from around the world. Even when students find a passion outside of one of our over 75 co-curriculars, we do our best to accommodate.

Reece travels several times a week to Caledon, ON for training sessions, and practices on campus with Mr. Clyde Dawson. “Ridley has helped by allowing me to practice on campus under the supervision of Mr. Dawson two times a week after school as part of my sport credit,” says Reece.

Reece was recently featured in an episode of Future Legends on WIN HD Caribbean, who profiled his perseverance and determination, to overcome an eye injury to compete at the highest level. Ridley encourages students to discover and pursue their passions, persevere through challenges, risk failure, and develop grit and resilience. Accomplishment and engagement are elements of a flourishing life. Grit is a fundamental element for achievement and Reece has embodied this.

His next competition is the Multi-sites Indoor Championships of the Americas (MICA), which will involve archers from the Americas and the Caribbean. Afterwards Reece says he will be focusing on upcoming outdoor competitions in Montreal and Sault Ste. Marie, shooting at a distance of 60m, and attending a training camp in Florida.

Introducing our final Prefect in our blog series, Annie! Annie is a part-time boarder with us from Chippawa. She proudly wears the number 11 for Ridley’s First Girls hockey and field hockey teams.

Why did you choose Ridley?

I chose Ridley because of hockey. I had been scouted for
the women’s hockey program in the summer of 2012.

Did you feel prepared coming to Ridley?

I was terrified coming to Ridley. I knew absolutely no one here and it was going to be my first year of high school. I had also just moved to a new city a few weeks before school started.

What are your plans after graduation?

I plan on playing university hockey, somewhere in Canada or the US. I’m interested in studying health sciences because I want to work in a rehabilitation center for trauma patients.

Who is your favourite faculty member and why?

That’s a hard one. I’d probably have to say my Housemaster, Mrs. Filion, or my coaches, Mrs. Wark and Ms. Doucet. All three of them have been a huge part of why I am the person I am. They all have been here for me since my grade 9 year and will continue to be, even after I graduate. I can comfortably talk about every aspect of my life with all three faculty members.

What has been your greatest challenge thus far at Ridley?

My greatest challenge thus far at Ridley has been time management. Being at Ridley, you need to learn how to use your time wisely. I play on first team sports and I am an 80% and above student. Therefore, being able to manage Ridley’s workload and being away for hockey almost every weekend can get extremely difficult. Although it’s been my biggest challenge, I have also improved a lot when it came to managing my time so I am thankful for that.

What has been your greatest accomplishment thus far at Ridley?

I’d say my greatest accomplishment would have to be earning the honour to be a school Prefect. Only a certain amount of grade 12’s get chosen to represent the school and I was 1 of 16.

What has been your favourite Ridley experience (thus far) and your favourite part of Ridley?

Choosing one favourite Ridley experience is impossible. The two things that came to mind would be our long lasting tradition, Snake Dance, and being able to represent Ridley on the ice and on the field. Both things have been a privilege to be a part of.

My favourite part of Ridley would most definitely be how Ridley is it’s own community within a community. Until you experience the Ridley community, you won’t understand it. Every single person at Ridley is family. You spend approximately 16 hours of the day with other students. We see each other at our best and we see each other at our worst. I can honestly say that leaving this school will be heartbreaking.

What are the most important things you have learned from your time at Ridley?

As stated before, one of the most important things I can take out of my time at Ridley and into the real world would have to be the capability to manage my time. No matter what I do in life, being able to have the skills to use my time appropriately will only benefit me.

What advice would you give prospective students about Ridley?

The most intimidating thing coming to Ridley, for most students, is the fear of no one liking them and not being able to fit in. Therefore, my biggest piece of advice I give new students is to just be yourself. Often people forget that you don’t need to change to “fit in” at Ridley.

Thank you Annie and all of our prefects for contributing to our introductory blog series. To review our past interviews, please click here.

Our Rowers competed at the Head of the Charles this past weekend in Boston. Madison Leitch and Alison Whitty (Bow) started 21st and finished 5th in the Junior Women’s event.

Austin Bald (Bow) and Connar Boyd started 16th and finished 8th in the Junior Men’s event. Both crews rowed very well and were pleased with their races.

The First Girls Basketball team took home a silver medal in the St. Catharines Collegiate Basketball tournament. The girls lost in the final to A.N. Myer 53-31. Ainsley Camroux-Peacock lead the Tigers with 11 points, Laura Voigtlander added 9, 5 assists and one steal and Emma Rigg had a team-high 4 rebounds.

The First Girls Hockey team won a gold medal at the Mercyhurst Invitational in Erie, PA after a 1-0 shutout of NAPHA rival Gilmour Academy in the championship game.

The U13 soccer team made the semi-finals of the CAIS Championship that was hosted at Ridley, but were defeated by the undefeated and eventual tournament winners – UCC. Second place went to St. Andrew’s. The teams third place finish was one of the best in Ridley’s 36 year association with the tournament.

The Ridley College Senior Girls’ Basketball Team paid a visit to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario (Queen’s Park) yesterday on their way to a CISAA League game. The second largest provincial legislature in Canada, the girls and coaches learned, among other facts, the Legislative Assembly is known as the ‘Ontario Provincial Parliament’ because unlike the other Canadian provinces, members of this assembly refer to themselves as ‘Members of the Provincial Parliament’ (MPPs) as opposed to ‘Members of the Legistlative Assembly’ (MLAs) as in the other provinces. A terrific CROSS-CURRICULAR learning afternoon for the Team combining – Athletics, History and Politics!! Oh ya and on the court – the senior girls took De La Salle 48-12! First year Leonie V. scored a season high of 12 points in the game. Next game for the girls is this Saturday – Homecoming at 1 pm in the Griffith Gym.

Carl Dorland Invitational Basketball TournamentThe senior boys basketball team won the 17th Annual Carl Dorland tournament Saturday afternoon 50-31 over a talented Nantyr Shores team from Innisfil, Ontario (Barrie region). Mr. Dorland’s presence on the bench seemed to ignite the Tigers who came out on the attack playing solid team defence and scoring hi-lite reel transition baskets in leading 15-11 after the first quarter of play. The Tigers built on this momentum early and often in the 2nd quarter to extent their lead to 31-14 by halftime. Geno Bullard played his best game as a Ridley Tiger this afternoon demonstrating tremendous offensive skill but more importantly an improving knowledge of ‘time and score’ when setting the offensive as point guard scoring 9 points and dishing out 12 assists. Cooper Rigg led the scoring with 25 points with many easy ‘bunnies’ courtesy of Geno’s pin point passing. All members of the squad are to be commended on their improving level of team play. Thanks to all of those members of the Ridley family both past and present who came out to cheer on and create an exciting atmosphere in the gym. Ridley returns to league play this coming Wednesday vs. Royal St. George’s College at the Tigers Den with tip off set for 1:30 pm.

First Volleyball Takes Second Win of the Season
Meanwhile in the Iggulden gym, the senior girls volleyball team took on Lakefield College School. The girls continue to show their winning way taking the match easily in three sets 25-11, 25-12, 25-12. All the girls had strengths in the match including great setting from LeAndrea Armbrister and Alison Whitty, good all around court movement, and good communication by all. Next up for the Tigers will be a home game against Branksome Hall tonight at 5:00pm. Come out and support your Tigers as they take on the powerful Branksome squad.

First Girls Hockey
The First Girls Hockey Team travelled to Canton and Potsdam, NY over the weekend for the North American Prep Hockey Association cross over league games. On Friday the girls beat Rice Memorial Academy and Northwood Academy, both 5-1. On Saturday, Ridley took on Kuper Academy with a final score of 3-0 for Ridley and Rothesay Netherwood 6-1.

Grade 12 student Ainsley Camroux-Peacock and Grade 11 student Franziska Streit have been selected to participate in this year’s Niagara Regional Girls Basketball All-star game. They’ve been identified as 2 of the top 20 basketball players in the region. Well done!

The senior boys basketball team got off to a bit of a rocky start last night but eventually righted the ship in disposing of Holy Cross Secondary School 68-33 in semi final action in the 49th Annual St. Catharines Standard basketball tournament. Tied 10-10 after a sloppy first quarter the Tigers started to find their game early in the second quarter and by half time had secured a 32-19 lead. In the third quarter the relentless Tiger pressure finally got to the Raiders squad and a comfortable lead was established. Leading the Tiger attack was Cooper Rigg 25, Geno Bullard 18 and Kristers Moisejs 10 points.

The First Boys Basketball team opened the 49th Annual Standard Basketball tournament yesterday and soundly defeated Smithville Christian College 67-12.

Freshmen point guard Nick Green led the Tiger attack with 18 points (6, 3 pointers). The Boys basketball team are the defending champs and top seeds this year – quite the feat considering Ridley had not won the St. Catharines tournament since the inaugural year in 1963. Four out of five of Ridley’s starters are back from last year – Cooper Rigg, Kristers Moisejs, Geno Bullard and Cam Sweetnam and with notable newcomers Justin Symonette and Weston Saunder the boys just may have a shot at a repeat victory. Ridley’s next game is tonight, they will play the winner between Grimsby and Blessed Trinity at home in quarter final action. Tip-off is 7:30 p.m.